Solicitors charging six times more than peers

Some solicitors are charging up to six times more than others for the same basic services, a price survey by the National Consumer Agency shows.

However, as solicitors are not obliged to disclose their fees in advance of a detailed consultation, prospective clients have difficulty shopp-ing around for the best deal.

There was widespread reluctance among the legal profession to engage with the survey, in which 329 firms were asked to participate between October and December last year.

Only 20% completed the required questionnaire and provided quotations for their services, a response rate NCA chief executive Ann Fitzgerald said was “significantly less” than in studies the agency conducted with other professions.

For conveyancing on beh-alf of a single purchaser of a semi-detached house worth €220,000 with no complications in terms of title, tax or finance, quotes ranged from €750 in Leinster (excluding Dublin) to €4,000 in Connacht/Ulster.

For making a will, again in straightforward circumstances with a modest estate, fees quoted ranged from free in the case of two solicitors to between €50 and €300 for those who charged.

For grant of probate in the case of two siblings of a deceased widowed parent with a modest estate and uncontested will, the lowest quote was €950 in Munster and the highest was €6,150 in Leinster (excluding Dublin).

Only one solicitor had prices on display at their premises and even though almost half had websites, none had fee information displayed online.

Ms Fitzgerald said the survey highlighted the difficulty facing consumers trying to get and compare quotes from solicitors.

Under the draft legal services regulatory bill, which is likely to become law later this year, solicitors will have to be more upfront about their fees but only when a client engages their services.

Ms Fitzgerald said: “It is the NCA’s view that more needs to be done in advance of this, to enable consumers to get a number of quotations and to make a decision, on the basis of full information, in relation to who they want to hire.”

Ken Murphy, general secretary of the Law Society, said the variety of prices showed there was competition in the market.

“We encourage solicitors to give quotations and we encourage consumers to shop around, bearing in mind that price is not he only factor in deciding what service to choose. Legal firms do compete on quality of service as well as price.”

Legal fees

Average fees for basic legal services excluding complications and VAT:

* Conveyancing (for house worth €220,000): €1,302

* Making a will (for widowed spouse with two offspring, a house, and €20,000 in savings): €119

* Grant of probate (for two equally entitled offspring of above after death): €2,767